Bank note



Patented Sept. 28, 1943 UNITED STATES PATENT'VWM OFFICE BANK NOTE Heinz E. Kalimann, New York, N. Y.

Application January 5, 1942, Serial No. 425,653

- 12 claims. (cl. 28a-s) My present invention relates to bank notes, bonds and other instruments of value. At present bank notes, andk other instruments of value are mostly printed on paper; such notes become easily contaminated or defaced and are easily imitated by forgers,

It is therefore an object of my present invention to prevent alteration of the indications on such bank notes or other instruments of value either by mechanical erasure or chemical manipulation.

Another object of my invention is to make bank notes which are more elastic, more durable and thus more economical than bank notes of the type used at present.

Still another object of my invention consists of bank notes or similar instruments of value which will not warp, crease or break under any ordinary handling and preserve their essential qualities longer than the best paper bank note that can be made.

A further object of my invention consists of bank notes which would be of pleasant cleanness, long-lasting, dimcult to destroy or to deface and less easily forged than either paper money or coins.

Still a further object of my invention consists of bank notes orgsimilar instruments of value which would be diftlcult to tear, yet which would be so flexible that folding would leave no marks.

.Still a further object of my invention consists of bank notes or like instruments of value which would be non-inammable and not affected by water or other usual solvents.

With the above objects in view, my present invention mainly consists of a bank note, bond or other instrument of value being made of a flexible sheet of non-inflammable water-resistant plastic material with the indicating numbers or gures incorporated in this material.

For the purposes of my invention various plastic materials may be used as, for instance, plasticized vinyl ester resin, polyvinyl butyral or other flexible plastics which are non-inflammable and water-resistant.

By selecting one or the other types of plastic and by treating the sheets made out of this plastic by various processes, thechief properties of such sheets may be varied to a great extent: thus, for instance, the sheets may have different color or thickness, they may be more or less transparent, stretchable or flexible.

In accordance with my present invention the bank notes may be made out of one or more sheets of plastic material. In the latter case two or more sheets are superimposed and cemented or fused by heat or pressure -to each other, and

-the indicating marks, e. g., numbers o'r figures arranged on one of the inner vfaces of these sheets thereby avoiding any possibility of removing the same.

The novel features which I consider as characteristic for my invention are set forth in particular in the appended claims. The invention itself, however, will best be understood from the following description of specic embodiments when read in connectionwith the accompanying drawing in which: 1

Fig. l shows a longitudinal section of a bank note orsimilar instrument of value with indieating marks arranged in depressions in the sheet of which the bank note is made;

Fig. 2 shows a plane view of the bank note shown in Figure 1;

Fig. 3 shows a bank note consisting of two sheets of plastic material, inlongitudinal section, with the indicating marks arrangedin depressions of one of these sheets;

Fig. 4 shows a bank note made of one sheet of plastic material provided with minute cavities outlining the indicating marks;

Figs. 5 and 6 show a modification of the embodiment shown in Figures l and 2 in plane view and cross section;

Fig. 'I shows a bank note made of two sheets of plastic material and provided with printed indicating marks on the inner face of one of said sheets; l

Fig. 8 shows a bank note made of three sheets of plastic material; and

Figs. 9 and 10 show a bank note according to the present invention provided with additional markings along the edges and on the faces of the bank note.

The 'Dank note shown in Figures l and 2 consists of a iiexible sheet II of non-inflammable Water-resistant plastic material with the indicating numbers and figures I2 incorporated in this plastic material. In the embodiment shown in these figures the sheet` I'I is provided with depressions I3 made by embossing or in similar way; these depressions I3 are filled with a plastic material I4 which is of another color than the plastic material the sheet I I is made from.- This filling plastic material I4 is united with the plastic material of sheet II by cementing or fusing by heat and/or pressure.

The embodiment shown in Figure 3 consists of two sheets I5 and I6 of plastic material being permanently united by cementing or fusing by heat and/or pressure. The indicating numbers or figures il are arranged within depressions I8 of sheet in the way described above in connection with Figures 1 and 2.

In the embodiment shown in Figure 4 the bank note sheet i9 is made of a sheet of plastic material, minute holes are pierced through one or both surfaces of this sheetI 'and the resulting cavities filled with printing ink or another dyeing substance; these ink-filled minute cavities 20- are grouped in the shapeof the indicating numbers or figures.

In the embodiments shown in Figures 5 and 6 the indicating marks of plastic material are also provided in depressions 2| of the sheet22 made of plastic material; however, the plastic material forming the indicating marks fills the deeper parts 23 of the depressions 2| only and is covered by a plastic filling-material 24 which is preferably transparent. Naturally the color or transparency of the indicating marks 23 should differ from that of sheet 22. In this way images and designs of various degrees of shading may be produced, the varying depth of shading corre-- sponding to the varying thickness of the colored deposit corresponding to the varying depth of the embossed depressions.

In Figure 7 a bank noteis shown which consists of two superimposed sheets 24 and 25 of plastic material. The indicating numbers or figures 26 are printed on the inner face 21 of sheet 24' before this sheet is united by fusing or cementing with sheet 25. For printing not only ink but also a great variety of other materials might be used. The vparticles of this material are embedded between two united sheets of plastic material and thus securely held in their place.

A three-layer bank note consisting of one inner sheet 28 and two outer sheets 29 and 30 is shown in Figure 8. The indicating marks may be provided in any of the ways shown in Figures 1 to 7 on one or both faces of sheet 28 or on the inner faces of sheets 29 and 3B.

The bank notes shown in Figures 9 and 10 are provided with additional marks facilitating their counting and sorting. Thus, for instance, punched holes 32, toothed edge-portions 33, or roughened surface portions 34 may be provided for facilitating automatic sorting and counting of the bank notes by business machines of usual type. The roughened surface portions might also serve for the final numbering of the bank note which has to be provided on one of its outer faces.

Naturally, variouscombinations of the abovedescribed features are possible: thus, for instance, the indicating numbers and figures may be composed of punched holes of the type shown in Figure 9. Furthermore, it is also possible to make the bank notes shown in Figures 4 to 6 of two or more sheets of plastic material, as shown in Figures 7 and 8.

Various modifications .of the above embodiments are possible. Thus the outer sheets 29 and of the bank note shown in Figure 8 may be made stretchable and the inner sheet 28 may be made fiexible but not stretchable e. g. of a textile fabric in order to maintain the original shape of the bank note, Furthermore, the inner sheet 28 may be non-transparent and covered with transparent or tinted outer sheets 29 and 30.

A further modification consists of making one o r more of the sheets of which the bank notes are made from a plastic material containing one or more substances having certain optical or other effects. Thus, for instance, the plastic material may contain a luminescent, e. g., fluorescent or phosphorescent substance.

The sheets may also contain particles which are strongly absorbent or highly reflective in certain parts of the ultra-violet or infra-red band of the spectrum. Particles of the sheets or certain areas of the same may also have a polarizing effect; this effect might, for instance, be created by stretching these areas in manufacture so that they are under strain when the note made out of thesesheets, is flat.

One or more of the sheets of which the bank notes are made may also be provided with watermark-like colored or transparent pattern. The sheets may also contain 'fibres embedded in the same at random or parallel to each other. 'I'he plastic materialof the sheets might also contain liquid, gas or air bubbles distributed over the whole area of the sheet or a part thereof.

Furthermore, it is also possible to make in bank I notes consisting of two or more sheets one or more of the outer sheets of translucent or opaque plastic material and to provide this sheet or sheets with transparent window-like patches through which indications on the other sheet are visible.

Bank notes of the type described above may be smaller in size than those made of paper and of simpler pattern since they are protected againstV forgery by technological elaboration rather than through accumulation of Aintricate details of design. This protection may be enhanced by making the bank notes of a material conspicuously different from anything in widespread use so that the material itself will not be easily accessible to forgers.

It will be understood that each of the elements described above, or two or more together, may also find a useful application in other types of instruments of value usually made of paper differing from the types described above.

While I have illustrated and described the invention as embodied in bank notes I do not intend to be limited to the details shown, since various modifications and structural changes may .be made without departing in any way from the spirit of my invention.

Without further analysis, the foregoing will so fully reveal the gist of my invention that others can by applying current knowledge readily adapt it for various applications without omitting features that, from the standpoint of prior art,

fairly constitute essential characteristics of thel generic or specific aspects of this invention and,

therefore, such adaptations should and are intended to be comprehended within the meaning and range of equivalence of the following claims,

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A bank note, bond or other instrument of value comprising a exible sheet of non-infiammable water-resistant flexible plastic material being provided' on at least one face with depressions in the shape of the indicating numbers or figures, said depressions being lled with a flexible plastic material' which is of another color than the flexible plastic material the sheet is made from, saidifilling flexible plastic material being permanently united with the walls of said depressions so as to form a single, inseparable plastic sheet.

2. A bank note, bond or other instrument of value being made from at least two superimposed fiexible sheets of flexible non-inammable waterresistant plastic material permanently fused to each other, at least one of said superimposed sheets being provided on that face at which it is fused to the other sheet with depressions in the shape of the indicating numbers or figures, said depressions being filled with a flexible materialv which is of another color than that of the exible plastic material the sheet is made from, said filling flexible material being permanently held within said depressions and united With said sheets by fusing the same toY each other.

3. A bank note, bond or other instrument `of value consisting of a flexible sheet composed of various visibly contrasting exible plastic materials juxtaposed in the plane of said sheet and fused to each other, at least one of said flexible materials forming the body of said sheet, and at least one other of said flexible materials forming indicating numbers or gures embedded within said body-forming `flexible plastic material.

4. A bank note, bond or other instrument of value consisting of two outer and one inner superimposed ilexiblesheets of flexible non-inflammable, water resistant plastic materials, at least one of said three flexible sheets being provided on at least one inner face with depressions in the shape of indicating numbers or figures, said depressions being filled with a flexible plastic material visibly contrasting with that flexible plastic material of which said depressions containing flexible sheet is made, the outer flexible sheets being stretchable and the inner flexible sheet being non-stretchable in order to maintain the original shape of said bank note, bond or other instrument of value.

5. A bank note, bond or other instrument of value comprising at least two superimposed flexible sheets of flexible non-inflammable, Water resistant plastic materials permanently fused to each other, at least one of said superimposed flexible sheets composed of at least two types of visibly contrasting flexible plastic materials, -one of which forms the body of said flexible sheet and the other indicating numbers or figures incorporated in said body-forming flexible plastic material, at least one of said sheets having incorporated in the flexible plastic material or materials of which it is made, fibres visibly contrasting with the flexible plastic material of the sheet ln which they are incorporated.

6. A bank note, bond-or vother instrument of value consisting of an inner non-transparent and two outer superimposed transparent flexible sheets of flexible non-inflammable, water resistant plastic materials permanently united, at least one of said sheets provided on at least one of its inner faces with depressions in the shape of indicating number or figures, said depressions being filled with a exible plastic material visibly contrasting with the flexible plastic material of the sheet provided with said depressions, said visibly contrasting flexible plastic material being permanently held within said depressions and united with said sheets by fusing the same to each other.

'7. A bank note, bond or other instrument of value provided with indicating numbers or figures, consisting of a flexible sheet composed of at least two types of visibly contrasting materials atleast one of which contains a luminescent substance, the body of said sheet consisting of one of said flexible plastic materials and said indicating numbers or figures consisting of at least one of the other of said exible plastic materials incorporated in said body-forming first flexible plastic material juxtaposed to portions of said body-forming flexible plastic material in the plane of said sheet.

8. A bank note, bond or other instrument of value provided with indicating numbers or figures, consisting of a. flexible sheet composed of at least two types of visibly contrasting materials at least one of which contains a fluorescent substance, the body of said sheet consisting of one of said flexible plastic materials and said indicating numbers or figures consisting of at least one of the other of said exible plastic materials incorporated in said body-forming first flexible plastic material juxtaposed to portions of said body-forming flexible plastic material in the plane of said sheet. v

9. A bank note, bond or other instrument of value consisting of two outer and one inner superimposed flexible sheets of flexible non-inflammable, water resistant plastic materials, at least one of which contains a phosphorescent substance, at least one of said three sheets being provided on at least one inner face with depres* sions in the shape of indicating numbers or figures, said depressions being filled with a plastic material visibly contrasting with that flexible plastic material of which said depressions containing sheet is made, the outer sheets being stretchable and the inner sheet being non-stretchable in order to maintain the original shape of said bank note, bond or other instrument of value.

10. A bank note, bond or other instrument of value consisting of a flexible sheet composed of various visibly contrasting flexible plastic materials, at least one of said exible materials being strongly absorbent or reflective in the ultraviolet or infra-red band of the spectrum, said visibly contrasting flexible plastic materials being juxtaposed in the plane of said sheet and fused to each other, at least one of said materials forming the body of said sheet, and at least one other of said flexible materials forming indicating numbers or figures embedded within said body-forming flexible plastic material.

11. A bank note, bond or other instrument of value according to claim 2, at least one ofthe two superimposed exible sheets being of decreased transparency with transparent windowlike patches through which the inner face of the other sheet is visible.

1,2. A bank note, bond or other instrument of value consisting of a flexible sheet composed of various visibly contrasting flexible plastic materials, at least one of which contains polarizing particles, said visibly contrasting exible plastic materials being juxtaposed in the plane of said sheet and fused to each other, at least one of said materials forming the body of said sheet, and at least one other of said flexible materials forming indicating numbers or figures embedded within said body-forming flexible plastic material.

HEINZ E. KALLMANN. 

